YODA: A local digital tuition platform with a twist

Yoda is a pick and choose platform for students and private tutors. Mohammed Salman, Co-founder of Yoda, spearheaded the project, recalling how difficult it was for him to find tuitions when he was a university student himself. Yoda eliminates the middle man and gives tutors a free platform to find suitable tuitions. Yoda currently has a website with over 3500 registered tutors with their specialties, qualifications listed on the website. Yoda aims to streamline the private tuition business for all parties involved, and best of all, it's free.

Yoda has recently launched its android application called Yoda Education, with an iOS version in the works. You can sign up as a student or a parent on Yoda's website or app. Tutors will also be able to open their own accounts on Yoda when the startup starts the referral service. Yoda handpicked students from universities during their Activation campaign and all the tutors on Yoda's service are verified. Users can request for tutors and tutors have the liberty to find students according to their convenience. Yoda also provides information on convenient timings for both students and tutors. It also enlists tutors based on their expertise, preferred subject and their expected fees.

Yoda also has a built-in messenger platform, through which tutors can communicate with students and vice versa. It comes with a monitoring system which will allow parents to keep up-to-date with their children's learning.  All these services are available on both Yoda's website and the app. The startup will release Yoda Whiteboard very soon - Yoda Whiteboard is a fully online platform where tutors can teach students through video calling and the use of a peer to peer whiteboard system, similar to what we have seen on Khan Academy.

The market for private tuitions has always been controlled by a few key organisations and institutions. These parties act as middle men between the tutors and students. But Yoda's simple design and transparent model can bridge the long-standing gap that has made private education such a hassle for so long.